Gauntlet (NES)
This version of Gauntlet was heavily modified, and given the first story of the series. It was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987, developed and published by Tengen. Two versions of the cartridge exist, both licensed and unlicensed. Story The black clouds swirled over the heads of the chosen ones. Four had come this far, but only two could continue. The portal to their deadly challenge awaited. Forboding screams rose up from the Gauntlet. Morak the Evil One cackled in glee as he watched the intrepid warriors prepare to enter his most terrible Gauntlet. He knew they would never reach their goal. The Sacred Orb would remain forever imprisoned at the lowest level of the Gauntlet. Without the Sacred Orb, Morak knew the mortals that inhabited Rendar would be helpless against his evil magic. Morak had plundered the lands and hidden his booty in the Gauntlet. He garrisoned his henchmen in the Gauntlet to guard it. There were ghosts, grunts, demons, sorcerers, and even incarnations of Death himself. But could the Sacred Orb be in the Gauntlet? No mortal knew for sure. If nothing else, the warriors could retrieve the treasures of Rendar that Morak had plundered and stored in the Gauntlet. If only all four warriors could all continue, on this, the last leg of their quest. Alas, the portal only allowed passage of two mortals. The warriors need your help. Choose from among them the two that shall continue: Become Thor the warrior, Thyra the valkyrie, Merlin the wizard, or Questor the elf. The fate of Rendar is in your hands. Gameplay This game combines elements of both Gauntlet and Gauntlet II. There is a limit of 100 stages, and players will be locked out of the last stage if they haven't picked up all of the clues in Clue Rooms. Treasure Rooms allow the player to collect many more treasures than are otherwise available. Worlds The Gauntlet consists of five worlds: * The Castle * The Dark Forest * The Lost Caverns * The Unseen * Volcana Characters The four heroes are available, but only two may be in play at a time. For the first time in the series, characters could increase their maximum HP totals by collecting treasure. More precisely, every 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, and 1600 points, a character's maximum HP will increase by a set amount. Ability Warrior Elf Wizard Valkyrie HP 980 820 800 900 HP Gain 80 120 100 100 Armor 4 2 1 5 Fight/Shot Power 5 2 3 3 Magic 1 3 5 2 Speed 2 5 3 3 Items Weapons * Bomb Potion Consumables * Extra Power Potion * Food * Invisibility * Invulnerability * Key * Reflective Shot * Repulsion * Super Shot: Each container allows for 10 shots. * Treasure Enemies Starting the trend for future installments, monsters come in three levels of strength and are spawned by monster Generators. Destroying these generators is a primary goal of the game, and essential for stopping the flood of monsters. * Acid Puddle * Demon * Ghost * Grunt * Lobber * Sorcerer (and Super Sorcerer) * Thief Dungeon Dressing * Destructible Wall * Movable Wall * Stun Tile * Teleport Tile * Trap Tile Category:Gauntlet Series